Restoring the Gulf of Mexico

Building a resilient Gulf Coast for birds and people.

The Gulf of Mexico is one of America’s great ecological treasures.

The region is home to a vast array of bird species and other wildlife, including 11 of Audubon’s flagship species as well as six Audubon priority species. These species use the Gulf at some point during their life cycles, for breeding, overwintering or as a migratory stopover. These species represent at least 300 other species and the ecosystem on which they depend.

Audubon is committed to restoring the Gulf of Mexico by focusing on priority habitats for these and other species, from Texas to Florida and out to the open ocean. The challenges facing the wildlife and human communities in the Gulf have been, and will continue to be, significant. For that reason, Audubon is working to monitor the health of birds and the places they need in the aftermath of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil disaster.

Through sound science, policy leadership, and habitat conservation and restoration, Audubon and our partners are protecting and revitalizing ecosystems battered by natural and human-made disasters, and advancing measures to protect birds in the face of overdevelopment, extreme weather events, sea-level rise, and other climate change impacts. Now, with unprecedented funding available for Gulf restoration and a greater need for effective conservation, we’re implementing four strategies to protect, enhance, and rebuild bird habitat:

  • Monitoring of flagship and priority bird species
  • Strategic conservation planning and advocacy
  • Coastal conservation and restoration through collaborative partnerships and programs, like the Restore the Mississippi River Delta Coalition
  • Long-term stewardship

To make our coastal communities stronger and to protect habitat vital for birds and other wildlife, Audubon is recommending an investment of more than $1.7 billion dollars across the 5 Gulf states and regionally to fund a suite of 30 projects that are crucial to help the region’s birds recover.

Audubon scientists identified over 8 million acres of suitable habitat for priority bird species across the Gulf that should be prioritized for restoration and conservation. These habitats include barrier and bay islands, headland beaches, intertidal bars and flats, and saltwater marshes and range from south Texas to the Florida panhandle.

Latest News
The Common Tern
Common Tern with chicks.
The Common Tern

Keeping nesting sites in the Boreal protected is an important part of reversing the impacts of events like the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Birds That Depend on a Healthy Gulf
! Priority Bird
Black Skimmer
Gulls and Terns
! Priority Bird
Snowy Plover
Plovers
! Priority Bird
Clapper Rail
Rails, Gallinules, Coots
! Priority Bird
Red Knot
Sandpipers
! Priority Bird
Least Tern
Gulls and Terns
! Priority Bird
Piping Plover
Plovers
! Priority Bird
Brown Pelican
Pelicans
! Priority Bird
Western Sandpiper
Sandpipers
! Priority Bird
American Oystercatcher
Oystercatchers
Semipalmated Plover
Plovers
! Priority Bird
Reddish Egret
Herons, Egrets, Bitterns
Black Tern
Gulls and Terns
Common Loon
Loons
Least Bittern
Herons, Egrets, Bitterns
! Priority Bird
Common Tern
Gulls and Terns
Bridled Tern
Gulls and Terns
Audubon's Shearwater
Shearwaters and Petrels